Deconstructing Luther Perkins

Learning some Luther Perkins licks today for a gig. Luther was Johnny Cash's guitarist from 1955 to Luther's death in 1968. He's a good example of a musician who noticeably develops and advances over the course of his career. One Johnny Counterfit writes on one of his webpages about Luther:

In conversations with Luther’s widow, Margie, I discover Luther had a never-ending desire to improve his guitar talents, including adding more intricate dimensions within his own creation.


His lead licks on early Cash sides like "Cry Cry Cry" (1956) were rudimentary but effective. By the time of the recording of At Folsom Prison in 1968, Luther was a fluid country player. He died tragically that year in a house fire at the age of 40.

Of particular interest for me at the moment are the lead guitar parts for "Cry Cry Cry" and "Get Rhythm". They're mostly boogie patterns, with occasional counter-intuitive moments. There's something stoic about Luther's early licks on these songs. That quality meshes well with Cash's doomy voice and stentorian songs.